Failing kidneys identified by chips

Helping doctors to monitor kidney function is the latest aim of a team of US analytical chemists. Charles Henry and Carlos Garcia, at Colorado State University, have developed a miniaturised point-of-care device that is the first of its kind to be applied to real clinical samples. The system comprises microchip capillary electrophoresis (CE) coupled to a pulsed amperometric detector (PAD).

Kidneys which no longer remove waste from the blood are symptomatic of end stage renal disease (ESRD) which kills 20 per cent of those affected within one year of diagnosis. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is therefore paramount. Creatinine, creatine and uric acid levels in urine and serum can be used as markers for renal function. Henry and Garcia’s device simultaneously detects all three compounds faster than the analysis of a single component by traditional assay methods with comparable reliability. This speed combined with the portability of a chip-based system means that as a potential diagnostic tool for the clinician, microchip CE-PAD is very promising.

Suzanne Abbott